When I came up with this idea, which is the title of the post, I wasn’t quite sure what it meant. I came up with it while I was shooting some hoops and started thinking about how the education system could become sustainable, when I realized I didn’t really know the true definition of the word. I looked it up and this is what I found.

“Capable of being sustained.”

So much for not using the word in the definition which I wasn’t allowed to do throughout my entire education. What is basically means is to be capable of continuing on at a certain level or degree. At this point I realized while this could be applied to the education system it could also be applied to what the education system could produce: sustainable individuals. People that could continue their lives after their education with the skills and values that they were taught, and thus living a sustainable life.

The next logical step was to view the Wikipedia entry on Sustainability where I found the section entitled “Development Sustainability”. This section is similar to what I believe education should be like. (Sections below in italics are from the actual wikipedia entry)

A definition of development sustainability is “the continuation of benefits after major assistance from the donor has been completed”

Major assistance from the donor is what your education and parents provide you with.

Ensuring that development projects are sustainable can reduce the likelihood of them collapsing after they have just finished; it also reduces the financial cost of development projects and the subsequent social problems, such as dependence of the stakeholders on external donors and their resources.

By ensuring sustainability of the students (projects) we reduce the likelihood of them relying on their parents (stakeholders on external donors and their resources)

There are ten key factors that influence development sustainability.
1. Participation and ownership. Get the stakeholders (men and women) to genuinely participate in design and implementation. Build on their initiatives and demands. Get them to monitor the project and periodically evaluate it for results.

Get the students and the parents to participate in their education. Allow them to make more decisions and customize their education.

2. Capacity building and training. Training stakeholders to take over should begin from the start of any project and continue throughout. The right approach should both motivate and transfer skills to people.

Give students and parents more control over their education. Train them to take over their lives after their formal education is over.

3. Government policies. Development projects should be aligned with local government policies.

Follow the rules and abide to the government regulations for education.

4. Financial. In some countries and sectors, financial sustainability is difficult in the medium term. Training in local fundraising is a possibility, as is identifying links with the private sector, charging for use, and encouraging policy reforms.

Get the people more involved. Don’t just depend on the government (local and national) to provide funding. Develop new ways of fundraising online.

5. Management and organisation. Activities that integrate with or add to local structures may have better prospects for sustainability than those which establish new or parallel structures.

Get the students involved with their local community. Teach them the responsibility they have to where they live.

6. Social, gender and culture. The introduction of new ideas, technologies and skills requires an understanding of local decision-making systems, gender divisions and cultural preferences.

When trying new ways of educating, first educate the parents on your new ways and get them involved.

7. Technology. All outside equipment must be selected with careful consideration given to the local finance available for maintenance and replacement. Cultural acceptability and the local capacity to maintain equipment and buy spare parts are vital.

Don’t go crazy with technology because it will cost you later. Get access to the internet with fast and cheap computers. Make it so your technology can scale when new products come out.

8. Environment. Poor rural communities that depend on natural resources should be involved in identifying and managing environmental risks. Urban communities should identify and manage waste disposal and pollution risks.

Make the actual building itself environmentally friendly. Get the students involved and education them on the environment.

9. External political and economic factors. In a weak economy, projects should not be too complicated, ambitious or expensive.

Use your constraints to your advantage. When setting up an education system in a under developed location keep it simple and then grow.

10. Realistic duration. A short project may be inadequate for solving entrenched problems in a sustainable way, particularly when behavioural and institutional changes are intended. A long project, may on the other hand, promote dependence.

Plan projects with long time spans that allow students to develop their skills and mature. If a student is struggling in a subject, just don’t help them once on the current problem at hand. Set up a time to help them each week as new problems arise.

In conclusion, develop your education system so that it is sustainable and so that it may produce sustainable individuals.